#001 The first sunrise, a Japanese New Year's tradition
About my annual family tradition to watch the first sunrise of the year - and some tips on how you can enjoy it too.
The door to the new year 2022 has opened and this will be our third year in a global pandemic. Lots of you must have been frustrated not being able to travel so long. Japan is still closing its door for tourists from overseas. Even though there are many other ways to experience Japan thanks to modern technology, do you really want to sit and wait until the country reopens its gates?
In this newsletter I hope that I’ll be able to provide you with tips for your next visit to Japan or at least to help you get inspired.
First, let me tell you a little bit about myself. I’ve worked in journalism for over 30 years and traveled to more than 40 countries. I mainly specialized in current affairs and covered news regions in the Middle East, Africa, and Europe. I have a strong passion for cycling and hiking. Cycling in the Australian desert and New Zealand has made a strong influence on my life. Cycling and traveling on foot are still my favorite modes of travel to this day. Better observation can be done by slow transportation in another word by human power.
In my first newsletter I want to focus on the topic of sunrise. Even though we are in April, it’s never too late to look forward to the year of 2022. Why do Japanese people take it so seriously and search for the best locations to see the very first sunrise? I have been doing it so many years without coming to the answer.
But the answer to this question is not important. Instead, I want to give you some tips on how to get a better view of your first sunrise for your next special visit to Japan.
For years, my family and I have always celebrated the view of the first sunrise from the Tokyo bay area. This year, we wanted to change things up.
This year I have changed my location after viewing from Tokyo bay area over ten years. I just have been tired of the same location every year. When you open a map of Kanto Plain and try to figure out the best location to see the first sunrise, you may have no idea where to go unless you’ve lived in Tokyo for many years. When picking up a good location, the important factors are as follows:
1/Enough elevation to secure the sight
2/Easy access by public transportation in the morning
3/Using a car will give you more choices before the sunrise
4/Avoiding congestion at the location
5/ Somewhere that's not too cold (since you'll be waiting outside for a long time)
6/Avoid what we call “power spots” which attract many people
It won’t be long before you realize that you don’t have too many choices. Getting to the location before 06:45 AM, you really have to jump on a train very early if you use public transport. Or you’ll have to take your car and start walking in the dark. This is what I did this year. My family and I decided to climb Mt Tonosu(270.7meter) in Hano City, Saitama prefecture.
The great thing about this little mountain is that it’s easy to climb even in the dark and you can see the sunrise over the skyscrapers in Tokyo including the Sky Tree. And the mountain top has a slope towards the east and accommodates fairly good number of people. I saw approximately 200 people on top and it was really cold but the view was something.
You’ll still be very lucky to see the best sunrise without clouds. You may say you’d rather stay home and watch TV, but I strongly recommend taking a chance and getting your heavy bottoms out there. You’ll be rewarded with the power of the sunshine.